Clinical features and immunohistochemistry profile of biopsy-proven gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST): a description of 5 years case series and literature review of GIST

Abstract

Abstract Background Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) was the most common mesenchymal tumor of the gastrointestinal tract predominately occurring in the stomach. Although GIST was a rare disease, it was considered to be a life-threatening malignancy. Objective To explore the current status of gastric GIST in Thai patients. Method The medical records of patients who were diagnosed with histologically proven gastric GIST from 2012 to 2016 in King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital were reviewed. Results Of 22 patients, there were 14 (63.6%) females and 8 (36.4%) males with the mean age of 62.6 ± 14.8 years. The average duration before the first presentation was 12 weeks. The initial symptoms were upper gastrointestinal bleeding (50.0%) followed by abdominal pain (31.8%). Tumor mostly located at the proximal part (fundus and cardia) in 20 (90.9%) patients. At the time of the diagnosis, three patients (13.6%) had distant metastasis. Of this group, 77.3% underwent surgical treatment. Discussion Although gastric GIST was an uncommon disease, early diagnosis and prompt treatment could save the lives of many patients.